What Viola Said

Part Two: Chapter 6

Max waits anxiously in the boy's locker room. His phone is in his hand and his hands couldn't stop shaking and he couldn't tell if it's from fear or anger.

Brandon told him to meet him during lunch when Max demanded him to do so. Max glances at the clock above the door and just in time, Brandon enters. Perhaps it's because of what he sent Max that he's now percieving Brandon as someone who is evil. He walks in like nothing happened, with his bag lazily slung over one shoulder and hands in pockets.

"What do you want?" He asks.

Max held his phone to his face, showing the text he sent him about two weeks ago, "What do you want?"

Max thought about telling Verena or not when he got the text but when she barged into his room last week, it made him hesitate. The fact that she looked so fragile and all over the place made him thought otherwise. He knew something like this would worsen the situation she was in so telling Brandon himself was the furthest he can go right now.

Brandon gives the picture and video a glance and chuckles as he sits down on the bench, "Look, Max, you're taking this too far don't you think? I was just telling you."

"Telling me what?"

"That your girlfriend is a slut."

Max never thought he was capable of such a strong force of a punch until he threw his fist at Brandon, making him crash into the lockers behind. Brandon doesn't say anything when he lands on the floor with blood already gushing out of his lips.

"Why'd you do this then?" Max asks, stepping closer.

"You know why." Max wanted to punch him again, or even worse because he's tugging at every single nerve he has, "She's always using me. It's about time I use her for something too."

"Use her for what?"

Brandon bitterly chuckles, "That's what you're concerned about? You're not concerned about what she's been using me for? Whenever she needs someone to hit it off it's always me. And she knows damn well how I felt about that."

Max nods, of course, Brandon liked her. Everyone liked Verena, it's no surprise.

When Max stays quiet, trying to think of a way to get to a point he wants to make, Brandon speaks up instead, "And I haven't figured out what to do with that yet." He shrugs his shoulders, "I don't know, I'll keep it 'till I come up with something."

"This is wrong," Max says, "I can report this to the administration and you'll be out of the team for good."

"Are you blackmailing me?" Brandon asks mockingly and gets up, brushing his clothes, "And for someone so smart like you, Max, it's dumb to report that. You should know very well that that's the last thing you wanna do. Do you really think they're gonna give a fuck? Don't you remember what happened to MJ?"

Brandon could've done so many other things that could bring down Max but bring up MJ. Max doesn't know how to feel about this. He wants to tell himself that MJ is old history but he also started to get pissed at Brandon for bringing up MJ to win over him.

Another punch is a good idea, he thought. Or maybe not, "MJ? Is that all you got?"

"What?" Brandon smirks, "Is it too humiliating for you? Bringing up the time when you were cheating on her while she was--"

Another punch is definitely a good idea. Brandon hits the locker hard on his back while Max's arm stays across his neck. He can't let him finish the sentence. It's true, it's way humiliating for him. Even if they talked not long after she left. Even if she assured him that she was doing fine.

"You need to learn to keep yourself out of people's businesses," Max says and Brandon laughs.

He raises another fist but stops in track and drops his hand. Max wasn't in the mood to continue another dreading conversation with Brandon.

Brandon was Alaric Montague's best friend. Not that he isn't anymore, Alaric's always coming over to parties and school events because he apparently left a big impact on the school before graduating. He was the team captain that brought many many champions to Agthoven after all. That alone made him refuse to tell these things to Verena in the first place. There's nothing scarier than having history repeat with Verena.

Max grabs his bags, "You need to be better at coping your feelings, Brandon," he says and leaves the locker room and into the hallway, to the cafeteria with 10 minutes left of lunch period.

"Where've you been?" Theodore asks as Max sits down beside him. Theodore and Ernest seem like he's the only one to acknowledge his arrival.

"Had to meet Coach Greene," Max says, "And what's up with them?"

"Plan for the meeting today. Apparently, they want this super cool Halloween party this year. To me it sounds like it'd be the same," Ernest says.

"Shut up, E. At least we're doing something." Verena rolls her eyes to his response and takes a fry from Ernest's plate, "It might be a little same but there's always planning behind parties, am I right? I mean, this is not going to be extraordinary."

Theodore scoots closer to Viola and wraps an arm around her waist, "What do you have now?" he asks and Viola lifts her gaze from the notebook Angelica was writing on.

"US History," she replies, "And you"--Viola slides her hand into his blazer and kisses him--"have a free period."

Angelica scrunches her nose at the sight of the couple beside and shakes her head, "Get a room, Vee."

Verena's advice really helped Theodore. A simple 'talk', as Verena said was all it took for Theodore and Viola to click. The fact that he did it right after the chat him and Verena shared eased Theodore's mind too.

"I don't think I can make it to the meeting today," Max says.

"Why?" Verena asks curiously.

"Coach Greene told me to come by after school. I might be late, that is if I can make it."

Verena nods, "'Kay then, I can fill you up and text me if you can't make--" Verena stops and stares past Max's shoulder, "Holy shit," she whispered and nudged Angelica, who makes the same expression as Verena.

"Max, look." Ernest nods at the big doors of the cafeteria and Max turns around to see a beat up Brandon entering the cafeteria. He still looks like how Max last remembered him and at the sight of the beat up Brandon, Max couldn't help but chuckle.

"Who did that?" Angelica's eyes are still wide open like it is when it senses drama, "The hell happened?"

The rest of the cafeteria still has their eyes on him, following him all the way to his table, where he sits with his friends.

Agthoven at its finest.

Max shakes his head and turns back to his table and takes a sip of his water, clearly not giving any fucks what people would think about what happened to Brandon, "He looks good."

Angelica frowns but with a smile, "Never really liked him," she says, "Good for him."

Max raises an eyebrow at Verena whose eyes are shifting between Max and Brandon, "That was you, right?"

He's surprised she figured it out so quick but at the same time not, "Bingo," he says and Verena still sat there, confused. She, of course, wanted to ask why but hesitates and decides not to because she knows it's something that should be talked about in the middle of the cafeteria.

"I've been wanting to punch him and Alaric since last year," Ernest says and Max laughs, "Why'd you punch him though?"

"There was some..." Max trailed off and eyed Verena, "business."

Angelica scoffs, "Everything's business with you, that's old news, Max."